As semiconductor fabrication technologies progress to smaller feature sizes such as 65 nanometers, 45 nanometers, and below, immersion lithography methods are being adopted to address the problems associated with such fabrication. During an exposure process using an immersion lithography system, however, contaminates may accumulate on the wafer table, the wafer stage and/or the surface of the immersion system hood near the wafer table. Such contaminates can cause lithography exposure defects on the processed wafers.